I've often read that description (in prose fiction) should be dense to be interesting. It's a good rule. I often struggle to write concisely, so this seems worth studying. I've mostly been looking at Terry Pratchett books, and today is no exception. From Guards!
A lot of the Pratchett excerpts I've been posting are funny. This one feels a bit different. From Soul Music: ... She [Susan] hadn't thought of her grandfather for years. Until last night. I remember the stable, she thought. So big you couldn't see the
A description from Terry Pratchett's Hogfather: Death, pillow slipping gently under his red robe, stood in the middle of the nursery carpet... It was an old one. Things ended up in the nursery when they had seen a complete tour of duty in the rest of the house.
I'm repeatedly amazed what Terry Pratchett can do – and do again, and again – with a short sentence or two of description. Another quote from Guards! Guards!: "You had your holidays this year, Sergeant?" said Captain Vimes eventually, rocking back and forth on his heels. "Yessir,
I sometimes wonder how, in prose fiction, description and dialog can support each other. One way you can use description to support dialog is to explain intent in prose. For example, this passage from Hogfather (Terry Pratchett): "Is that all you're here for?" She [Susan] said.